Oregon settles with Oracle for $100 million over failed healthcare exchange
The state of Oregon has reached a settlement agreement with Oracle worth more than $100 million to the state, following a years-long legal battle over the state's disastrous and now-defunct healthcare exchange website Cover Oregon.
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"I am grateful to the parties for coming together to slay the many-headed dragon that the litigation has become," said Oregon Governor Kate Brown on Twitter, adding that the settlement "could save Oregon hundreds of millions of dollars over the next several years".
The state paid Oracle $240 million for the healthcare exchange, and according to The Oregonian, Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum had until now pushed back against Brown's interest in settling the case.
Under the settlement agreement, Oracle will reimburse the Oregon's $25 million in legal fees. The company will also provide the state with an unlimited license agreement for specific Oracle software and related technical support for six years. Oregon also gets guaranteed discounts for future purchases of Oracle software, as well as $10 million for an "Oracle STEM Education Program".
Oregon's lawsuit against Oracle, filed in 2014 a few months after Cover Oregon shut down, accused the company of fraud and racketeering. "Not only were Oracle's claims lies, Oracle's work was abysmal," the lawsuit said. Oracle released a statement at the time calling the suit "a desperate attempt to deflect blame from Cover Oregon and the governor for their failures to manage a complex IT project".